


Princess

by AdmiralPegasus



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: AU of an AU, Blind Character, F/F, Harry Potter was Adopted by Other(s), Hermione Granger & Harry Potter are Siblings, Kaleidoscopic Grangers AU, One Shot, Trans Character, Trans Female Character, Trans Girl Harry Potter, Trans Harry Potter, Werewolf Ariadne Granger, Werewolf Harry Potter, Werewolf Ronald Weasley
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-22
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-12 02:33:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29627760
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AdmiralPegasus/pseuds/AdmiralPegasus
Summary: A little fun AU of Kaleidoscopic Grangers, where it wasn’t just Ron who became a werewolf in Chapter 106, but Ariadne as well - alternate version of Chapter 143, “The Labyrinth,” where a werewolf!Ariadne completes the third Triwizard Task.
Relationships: Ariadne Granger/Ginny Weasley
Comments: 4
Kudos: 35





	Princess

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Kaleidoscopic Grangers](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24597805) by [AdmiralPegasus](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AdmiralPegasus/pseuds/AdmiralPegasus). 



> This is something we have fun thinking about in the Discord but that would have been way too chaotic to do in the canon. So this is a one-shot AU of Kaleidoscopic Grangers. Enjoy!

Ariadne’s heart was hammering faster than it had ever gone as she shakily walked alongside Sirius in perhaps the shabbiest outfit she could possibly have put together, wrapped in her cloak to conceal that she was wearing an old pair of shorts and a shirt she didn’t particularly care about losing, and that her feet were bare on the grassy hillside.

There was a good reason she was shaky, as she apprehensively turned her attention to the chalky grey fungal spires that split out of her magical core alongside the Goblet of Fire’s contract. That night was to be a full moon, as had been all the other Tasks, but this one had one notable exception. The task was to begin far later in the day.

So late, in fact, that she had decided to take it as an opportunity. It had been a difficult decision, but if the world was to know that the Girl Who Lived was also a werewolf, then winning the Triwizard Tournament with paws and a tail was one hell of a way to tell them.

That did not mean she was not anxious. She was terrified. Terrified for Ron, for how her plan endangered him - despite how the boy walking behind her had assured her he was behind her. He planned to be in the forest, like they both normally were, and she hoped his absence wouldn’t be telling, that the attention would be on her and not who was absent. Terrified for Remus, for how the world might react to even an accidental infection like had happened to her and Ron. Terrified for her family, for how the media might tear into them for harbouring a girl who was, in effect, an illegally unregistered werewolf for most of a year.

“Ah, Ariadne dear, Hermione, Dennis, Valerie,” Professor McGonagall said. “If you’d like to  _ present _ your daughter to the schools, you’re more than welcome to come in with her, otherwise I’m afraid I’ll have to ask you all to leave her with me,” she said to her parents, before noticing Sirius. “Oh, hello Mister Black.”

“Professor,” Sirius said, nodding. “You two go along, I’ll save you seats,” he said, before stepping to Ariadne. “Good luck, dear. What you’re about to do is… courageous to say the least. I don’t think even James or Lily would be so brave. You are so much more than James or Lily ever were, but you don’t need a sentimental idiot like me to tell you that. Go out there and  _ prove _ that.” Ariadne nodded, licking her lips nervously as she bit her lip.

“Good luck, Ariadne,” Ron said, smiling weakly at her. “You’re gonna do great,” he said simply, before grimacing and casting his walking stick aside to pull her into his arms.

“Don’t worry, Ron,” Ariadne assured him, as Hermione wordlessly stepped over to offer a hug as well. “I’ll sense you later,” she added, giving Ron her bag of clothes before burying her head in Hermione’s hair and letting her big sister envelop her, grunting a bit as Hermione squeezed her cracking shoulderblade.

“Oh, sorry,” Hermione mumbled, releasing her a little. “I… Remember everything we practiced, and keep moving. Nothing in there should be too dangerous on its own, other than the creatures you just need to navigate, and you’re good at that,” she rambled. “And then, well, yeah.”

“Yeah,” Ariadne replied breathily, cracking her neck painfully before sighing and smiling wryly at them, as her parents bit their lips. McGonagall jumped, seeing their expressions and leaping forward before Ginny got the opportunity to take her turn hugging Ariadne.

“Is it-  _ Merlin, Ariadne, we could have rescheduled this! _ ” McGonagall hissed, her expression frantic and bug-eyed. “You  _ are  _ aware of the moon’s phase, Miss Granger?!” Ariadne nodded, smiling gently. “Cutting it a little close!”

“Deliberately so,” Valerie said quietly as the sound of the crowd above assaulted Ariadne’s ears even with the orange glow of the  _ audiminus _ jinx on them. “Ariadne has decided to use the task to let everyone know,” she whispered, to a clearly horrified McGonagall. “By changing during it.”

“Is this true, Ariadne?!” McGonagall exclaimed. Ariadne nodded, smiling even as a wave of nausea blew over her.

“What better way than by winning the Triwizard Tournament?” Ariadne asked cockily, grinning. “Oh, Hermione, give that to the Minister for me would you?” she asked, taking out a folded wad of parchment and handing it to her sister.

“What is- oh,” Hermione spluttered, before unfolding it to reveal the glimmering blue ink that marked Ariadne’s form to have her name placed on the Werewolf Registry. “Okay.”

“They’ll know about me, so it doesn’t matter,” Ariadne shrugged. “Give it to him at the end though, give it some drama. This is gonna eat up the press.”

“You could have given us some more notice, Ariadne,” McGonagall breathed, shaking herself. “This is going to go… interestingly, to put it mildly.” Meanwhile, Ginny came around the side of McGonagall and leapt into Ariadne’s arms, her lips crashing into Ariadne’s as her heart smashed into the stratosphere, desperately trying to get a breath in as she realized what Ginny was doing, before utterly failing as her girlfriend took the place of air as the warmth running through her went nuclear. Then, for the briefest second, Ginny pulled back a bit, before going straight back into kissing her again as Ariadne could only hold Ginny to her. She could not care less about how it looked as she pressed into the deep kiss Ginny had initiated, she was in heaven. In that moment, all that mattered was Ginny. Not a thought in the world for what the world was about to find out, nor for the dangers that awaited her in the maze.

Both of them, however, were disturbed by Dennis clearing his throat loudly, and Ginny pulled away, smiling as one of her hands left Ariadne’s to run down her face.

“Don’t you dare die, my wolf, or I’ll kill you myself,” she said breathlessly.

“You think anything in there could kill me?” Ariadne joked, before letting a tiny growl bubble up her throat, grinning at her.

“All right, if you’re certain, Ariadne. Mr. and Mrs. Granger, Ariadne, if you would?” Professor McGonagally prompted softly as Dennis and Valerie nodded and waved hurriedly to Sirius, Hermione and Ron, but Ginny refused to let go of Ariadne just yet. An instinct Ariadne shared, if she was honest with herself.

“I love you,” Ginny said, before finally letting go, her arms lingering outward.

“Love you too,” Ariadne replied, smiling at her as she blew her a kiss. Beaming at Ariadne, Ginny reluctantly tore herself away, running to catch up with Sirius, Ron and Hermione to find a seat as Dumbledore led the three of them inside, while Professor McGonagall climbed up a small set of stairs to go above, and the Grangers joined the little line of the Champions and those they were being presented by. Cedric and Amos were at the front, as they looked with some concern at the clearly ill Ariadne. While for the other tasks she’d born a dozen glamours produced by Hermione, this time she’d deliberately forgone it. The sensory jinxes, however, she had not forgone, as she swam in the soup of her hearing and nose which assaulted her with the scents and clatter of a thousand observers directly above her.

“All right, Messrs. Diggory, if you would,” Professor Dumbledore said, sounding as if he were directly beside her as the Diggorys led the Triwizard Champions out dramatically, the assault on her ears only leaping into a headache as the crowd roared at their arrival, even as she leaned on her father to help her walk out onto the lawn. Her heart soared as she took in the magical banners, a minority of the crowd but all supporting her. Percy - the bigoted bastard - sat near the front in a box where she recognized the core and face of the Minister for Magic as well as many of the Professors, while up a ways, Ariadne sensed the unique cores of Ron and Ginny, the group of four bookended by Ginny and Hermione, who immediately coordinated something as Ariadne stepped out, her cloak billowing ever so slightly, but gladly not enough to reveal what she was wearing.

Splaying out from her girlfriend and her sister rose perhaps the largest banner in the entire crowd, blaring out at her muddied mind in magical ink as Hermione and Ginny hoisted the two wooden poles into the air and above the heads of Ron and Sirius, stepping out into the saved seats beside them to widen it out.

_ ARIADNE GRANGER: THE #1 TRIWIZARD CHAMPION! _ it read, tiny flecks of magic surrounding the words, that she realized were  _ signatures _ . She couldn’t read them at that distance, her magic sense didn’t benefit from the same visual enhancements that Ron’s eyes did, but from how many there were, it had to constitute most of Gryffindor House. She wondered if they’d keep supporting her after they saw the truth of what she was.

“ _ Sonorous! _ ” Dumbledore called, pressing his wand to his throat with a sickly purple glow as Ariadne threw her hands to her ears at the thunderous voice. Professor Flitwick jumped and stopped conducting, causing the band to break off discordantly as the crowd reluctantly sat down. Hermione and Ginny carefully leaned their massive banner forward so those behind them could still see, as Fleur gave Ariadne a strange look. “Earlier today, Professor Moody placed the Triwizard Cup deep within the maze!” Dumbledore declared. “Only he knows its exact position. Now, as Miss Granger-” he began, being cut off by a massive roar of applause, cheers and whistles that set Ariadne’s ears throbbing as she grimaced even as her parents pulled both of her hands into the air. “...Is in first position, she will be the first to enter the maze, followed by Mister Diggory… Mister Krum, and Miss Delacour,” he told them, as the crowd roared at each name and Karkaroff egged them all on before Moody’s blue, green and golden core quickly vacated one of the four entrances. “The first person to touch the Cup will be the winner!” he declared. “I’ve instructed the staff to patrol the perimeter. Should at any point a contestant wish to withdraw from the task, he or she only need send up red sparks with their wand.”

“You’re not going to be able to do that, are you?” Dennis asked Ariadne quietly, leaning down.

“Shouldn’t need to,” Ariadne replied with a smile, still facing the Headmaster.

“Contestants, gather ‘round!” Dumbledore called, beckoning them all with his wand. “Quickly!” he added, Ariadne already on her way from her parents to the man as the four Champions came together before him in a circle, the purple glow fading from Dumbledore’s throat. “In the maze, you’ll not only find creatures of the night and dark.”  _ Got one right here, _ Ariadne thought. “You will also face something far more challenging,” he murmured, his tone gravelly. “You see, people  _ change _ in the maze.” Ariadne snorted, receiving a strange look from all save Fleur, whose expression was an amused smile. Fleur had worked out what she was long ago, and her words still echoed in Ariadne’s mind.  _ Us semi-humans have to stick together _ . “Hmm. Oh find the Cup if you can, but be very wary, for you could just lose yourselves along the way.”  _ That _ was the red cloud, Ariadne realized as she mentally eyed it. It  _ was _ fairly similar to Fleur’s own purple aura in a way, and she idly wondered if Fleur would be immune to its effects thanks to the fraction of Veela blood in her veins.

Contemplations of what it might do to  _ her _ , however, filled her mind as she internally stared grimly at the cloud. Magic like that could do all sorts of things to a person, from the minor enhancement of attraction applied by Veela to rewriting memories or personalities at worst. She did  _ not _ want to lose any more of herself than she was already going to. She was, however, broken from her pondering by Cedric’s arm finding itself on her back, his other on Krum. Raising his eyebrows in surprise, Dumbledore stepped away as Krum nodded and followed suit, the four of them huddling together with their arms behind each others’ backs.

“Been a hell of a year,” Cedric said quietly, to a chuckle from Viktor and Ariadne.  _ You can say that again, _ Ariadne thought. “No hard feelings to whoever wins. You’re all great friends.” Hopefully that would remain true, Ariadne hoped as he withdrew his arms, putting his right hand into the centre of the group. “May the best Champion win.” Ariadne nodded, groaning as her arm clicked as she placed her shaking hand atop Viktor’s, as the boy had followed suit immediately, Fleur’s on top of her own.

“Are you all right, Ariadne?” Krum asked with quite a bit of concern on his face. “Coming down with something?”

“I’m… I’m all right,” Ariadne replied, wincing at a pain in her ribs. It wasn’t long now. Fleur laughed breathily as they detached, ruffling Ariadne’s hair gently.

“Well, good luck everyone,” Cedric said, still looking at Ariadne with a frown as Ariadne made her way painfully toward the entrance marked with magical paint.

“Champions! Prepare yourselves!” Dumbledore yelled as they parted to their respective entrances and Dennis wrapped Ariadne in a hug.

“Good luck, Ariadne,” Dennis whispered.

“Don’t need it. Moody put the cup in the centre. I know what he smells like,” Ariadne grinned, as Dennis let Valerie take hold of Ariadne.

“Oh, follow your nose,” Valerie snorted. “I suppose so. You can do this. Like Sirius says, you’re being incredibly brave tonight. Good luck, my dear. We’ll all be here for you after.”

“Thanks Mum,” Ariadne replied as they parted and Professor Dumbledore ushered Amos away. “Oh, take these,” she added, pulling her glasses over her head as she took them off, handing them to her mother. Whispers filled the stadium as everyone must have wondered why she’d done that. “ _ Aurum Radia _ ,” she murmured, quickly shuffling her wand out from under her cloak.

“Oh, um, we’d better go,” Dennis said hesitantly, kissing Ariadne’s hair briefly before shuffling away at Professor Dumbledore’s instruction. Ariadne waved back at them, before she groaned as she straightened her back with a dozen clicks, as Ginny and Hermione once again stretched out the gigantic banner they’d made far above.

“On the count of three!” Dumbledore called, pointing his wand at her as Filch stood beside the cannon to her left. “One!”

BOOM

With the thunderous, ear-splitting crash of the cannon and a disdainful look from Dumbledore, the band rang up again in earnest as Ariadne took a deep breath and stepped forward.

As soon as she crossed the threshold of the maze, the red cloud began gently wafting through her, filaments stretching out at her magic and tapping at it experimentally.

“Okay, we want to not let that do too much,” she murmured to herself as she took in the blue and green magic surrounding her that was the walls and the corridor that stretched far far forward before her. Behind her, the configuration of the multicoloured walls shifted, and the rustling leaves of the hedge maze crunched together behind her, turning the open sliver into a wall. “ _ Ergo _ , the maze can change shape. Let’s not  _ just _ rely on our nose,” Ariadne muttered, holding up her wand. “ _ Acciopharum _ Triwizard Cup,” she cast tiredly, a yellow beam shooting out and ahead to her left a ways. The walls were tall, but the beam of her beacon was taller and pierced into the sky far away from her. She wondered if the moon had risen yet. She didn’t benefit from the quick release Ron got, her blindness affording her no trance phase, and she could feel it building pressure in her bones and skin. Her hands were buzzing as her thumbs ached around her wand. “Gh… okay, just gotta go in that direction. Piece of cake,” she grunted, mentally glancing about. “Nothing? _ Piece of cake? _ Okay, cool,” she joked to herself, before beginning to stride hesitantly down the long corridor that fell before her.

“Hmph. It just goes on and on,” Ariadne sniffed, smiling slightly. “At least there are- ghhhhhh…” she grunted, panting heavily as a wave of pressure pulsed through her, and then again. The spires within her magic snapped outward aggressively. It was starting.

BOOM

Cedric had entered the maze.

Groaning as she began to shudder uncontrollably, Ariadne hurriedly pulled out the blue-glowing collar that she’d had stowed under her cloak and tapped it with her wand, sending  _ Aurum  _ pulses out as she velcroed her wand into its slot on it and let it fall over her head, its nametag jangling even as she fell against the hedge wall, her legs betraying her spasmodically as she slid down, her heartbeat thumping like Ginny’s drumset in her ears as it was all she could hear, her whole body burning as she convulsed, the magic of her jinxes fading as she lost concentration on them. Realizing it would get in the way, Ariadne hurriedly snapped the buckle of the cloak, sending the piece of metal flying as her arm flexed in inhuman strength.

Her ears twitched.

“H--GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!” the blood-curdling shriek escaped her lips as burning pain filled her being, the snapping of bones sending sharp daggers of agony into her as she convulsed on the rough dirt floor of the maze. Air did not fill her horribly stretching lungs as she lost control of her limbs, each fifth digit dissolving into her as a horrible tearing, crunching sound accompanied her agonized screaming as fur erupted over her, her shorts and t-shirt tearing to the ground and leaving her exposed to the night air as her bare feet elongated and reformed into their destined digitigrade form, her hips snapping and reconfiguring as she become truly quadrupedal.

It would be over soon.

Her hands had formed into paws, what had been her fingers exploded in pain as her claws had pierced through her skin as her fingernails had dissolved too, while the lines of chalky grey spasmed through her, finding their way into her arms and legs as with a horrible crunch and crack, new vertebrae formed into the torturously painful tail that thrashed in agony as she writhed on the ground. 

It would be over soon.

With a sickening  _ CRUNCH _ , her elongating skull snapped forward, her neck lengthening even as her torso thickened into her collar with fur and muscle, her ears sliding up the sides of her head and growing triangular as her voice devolved into gurgling growls and she finally regained the ability to breathe. Pain wreaked through her as pressure erupted all over her form, over and over again in waves, her teeth elongating terrifyingly as her hairy snout pushed out into the hedge.

Flickers of pain stabbed over her like pins and needles as she came to rest, wriggling on the ground and whimpering as she caught her heaving breath and resisted the urge to vomit. At least she hadn’t pissed herself.

Princess stood on all fours, shaking the pain out of her head as she waved from side to side, still recovering as energy flowed into her, a day’s worth of lost ability for the human in her filling her muscles as she collected herself, the aromas of trees and beast filling her nose, every tiny movement filling her twitching ears. She had to find the Triwizard Cup, and she knew what direction it was in.

The howl erupted through the night, echoing through the maze as she tilted her head back in eager triumph. It was time for her to  _ truly _ ...

_ Run _ .

Princess took off running, galloping on all four legs like a bat out of hell as she blasted past a red-tendrilled form, the Ariadne in her recognizing it as a Boggart just before it was already twenty feet behind her.

_ THERE! _

The scent of Alastor Moody met her nose like an explosion as she barreled over the blue-glowing vines that tried to entangle her, and she dove into the passageway like a bullet, nose to the ground as her collar pulsed outward in glorious blue to reveal the leafy maze to her.

The great white-eyed wolf stopped abruptly, her ears flattening against her head as a growl filled her mouth at the clicking noise that echoed through the maze, not twenty feet from her.  _ Invader _ .

BOOM

The Veela girl had entered the maze. No matter. That was a clicking noise she knew, and a scent she knew as well. Scents and sounds that didn’t belong in  _ her _ territory. She wasn’t a princess, she was the  _ queen _ of the night, and no dirty fucking Acromantula got to set up its nest in her maze. Princess padded forward, her ears twitching as she approached, webbing meeting her collar’s light. How dare it?

The clicking was close now, and she heard it near. Beside. It was in the next hedge, she knew, she could smell the offending spider.

The void-like red-tinged sky above her erupted into blue as the collar’s magic caught a gigantic pendulous body atop eight spindly legs leap into the sky above her from the corridor to the right. Princess snarled thunderously, baring her teeth as it scuttled to the floor to meet the gutturally growling werewolf.

That just didn’t do. Spiders were  _ not _ allowed in her maze.

Princess leapt to action, snarling viciously as her maw of knife-like teeth snapped down onto the centre of one of its legs, tugging angrily as the spider jumped and scrambled in its attempt to get away as Princess pulled back, claws digging into the dirt as she writhed back and forth, her angle affording her freedom from the Acromantula’s desperately clicking pincers and fangs. The wolf’s slicing teeth snapped down as the chitinous protection of the spider’s leg finally fell to the crushing power of her jaws with a sickening crunch as the creature roared in pain, spinning to face Princess before a bank of eight claws met its eight eyes, slicing into the Acromantula as it reared back. Princess took her opportunity with vigour, roaring as she tore at its unprotected underbelly, viscous slimy gore showering onto the ground as she managed to push it over, tearing into its abdomen as it tried to get hold of her, biting at any errant leg that tried to stab at her, the coppery stabbing taste of its blood filling her mouth as she savaged it.

Finally, as the wolf rent into its flesh, the Acromantula stopped moving, its abdomen perforated in gashes and giant wounds as Princess leapt off it and back onto the ground, sniffing at her foe as its legs curled in on itself, the Ariadne in her helpfully providing the knowledge that that meant it was dead.

Once again, her echoing howl tore through the night as another BOOM sounded through the air. Krum was in, as she was reminded of her goal.  _ Get the cup _ . Princess set her nose back to the ground, sniffing urgently as she stalked back to where she’d left Moody’s trail. Re-discovering it, her short tail wagging happily, she set about following the scent that guided her away from the invader’s nest and winding through the various corridors. She had to be close. She could  _ hear _ the Cup and the ringing noise Ariadne had struggled through when Dumbledore had revealed it to the Great Hall. It was near, and getting nearer, before a new sound pierced into her ears. A struggle. Yells of spells, the voice distinctly that of Cedric Diggory. Bursts of flame and clacking legs, as well as a scent she knew all too well from Hagrid’s lessons. Blast-Ended Skrewt. They were no danger to her. Not to the great white-eyed wolf that drew ever closer to her goal, and by extension to the battle between Cedric and the Skrewt.

There they were, down a corridor as she loped past, before she stopped, her ears twitching as Cedric cried out, battling the Skrewt valiantly as it lashed at him, knocking his wand away as he yelled out. His core was strange, lashings of red surrounding it and pulsing, but even then the tendrils were fading.

“WHAT THE FUCK?!” Cedric screamed, struggling to get to his wand past the Skrewt as Princess turned to the pair of them, prowling low as she approached. She didn’t particularly care if it killed him, but if it didn’t… well, what was one more werewolf? “WOAH!” Cedric yelled, jumping out of the way of what sounded like another gout of flame.

_ Bite… bite… _

“GET AWAY!” Cedric cried, his core no longer covered in red as something in Princess yelled out at her. She was missing something, she’d forgotten something.

The old man’s words echoed in her mind as a guttural growl filled her throat.

> _ Oh find the Cup if you can, but be very wary, for you might just lose yourselves along the way _ .

Princess grunted suddenly through her nose in surprised fear, as she turned her magic sense to her own core, the tendrils of red even then unravelling from their thick latchings onto the slightly blue spires of her lycanthropy, which were quickly going chalky again.

She wasn’t a monster. She was Princess, the wolf form of Ariadne Granger. She didn’t bite. Not  _ ever _ . How could she have even considered doing that to Cedric?!

Cedric was in trouble! Princess snapped to action, leaping forward and snapping at the stinger tail of the Skrewt, snapping it off in one enraged tug before the creature tried to spin to her in order to blast her with its flame, but was unable to as Princess leapt forward, slamming it to the ground and slicing into its soft belly with her teeth, Cedric stepping back in horror as she savaged the beast that had tried to kill her friend. How  _ dare _ it try to kill Cedric?! HOW DARE IT?!

Princess caught her breath, having coated the dirt in the fishy entrails of the Skrewt as she loped back and the viscera sloughed from her teeth onto the ground, catching Cedric’s horrified gaze. He was panting, moving to run. But he couldn’t leave without his wand! He’d be defenseless! Princess backed off, stepping over his silvery wand before pressing her nose to the ground and flicking it forward, sending the wand rolling toward its owner. Cedric jumped, before frowning and picking it up. As he pointed it at her, Princess sat on her haunches, panting friendlily with her tongue lolling out as he mouthed out confused sentences.

“What-wha… what the-” he spluttered, squinting at her. “Good doggie… good doggie- Hold on. You’ve got white eyes. And you’re wearing a collar.” Cedric lowered his wand ever so slightly, stepping toward her with his mouth hanging open. “Black hair… white eyes…  _ GRANGER?! _ ” he half-yelled, leaning forward. Princess huffed, nodding at him. “But how- transfiguration?” he asked. Princess tilted her head at him.  _ How _ had he not figured it out? “Oh my god… you’re a werewolf, aren’t you?” he hissed, before looking up at the sky. “And it’s full moon. Merlin, Granger…” She nodded, tail wagging happily and patting against the ground at his slightly slower realization than she’d expected. “Are you you?” he asked urgently, snapping his wand back up. Princess nodded, closing her mouth and huffing seriously. Thinking, she pawed at her collar pointedly.

_ Read the nametag _ .

“Thanks for that…” Cedric murmured, panting as he pointed at the sundered Skrewt even as he slowly approached her. “You’re not gonna bite me?”  _ NO! _ Princess thundered in her mind, whimpering as she leaned back, shaking her head. “Okay…” Cedric said, hesitantly leaning down to read the nametag as she averted her snout, facing the source of offending saliva away from him. She didn’t know what injuries he might have sustained from the battle with the Skrewt, let alone whatever else he might have encountered. She didn’t want another occasion like her and Ron. “Oh. Princess? Is that what you call this version of you?” Princess nodded.

Getting up off her haunches, Princess found she was just about stomach height on the admittedly tall boy - as a werewolf, she was supposed to be a bit bigger than your average wolf, but a number of factors had meant Princess was quite a bit smaller than Red. First, Ariadne’s growth had always been a bit stunted, and so Princess had been small to begin with. Second, Ariadne’s potions had carried over to her, and female wolves were typically smaller and skinnier. While the potions hadn’t made Princess technically what a vet would call a bitch, it was the closest she was ever going to get. As far as they were concerned, she was a bitch.

As far as Ginny was concerned, she was Ginny’s bitch specifically, but that was neither here nor there.

“Oh, you’ve still got your lightning scar,” Cedric noted with a small laugh, backing off a little as she stood. “I’m not going to hurt you. Professor Lupin was grand, so I trust you. No wonder you were all buggered earlier, you were right about to go bleeerrgh, weren’t you?” Princess nodded. Instead of approaching him though, she flicked her head sideways as if to beckon him, before returning her snout to the ground. Cedric frowned, not moving. She did it again.  _ Come on! I can take you to the Cup! _ “You want me to follow you?” Nod. “Oh, hang on. Dumbledore said Moody put the Cup in here, are you  _ tracking _ him?!” Princess nodded again, huffing happily as she let her tongue loll out again, tail wagging. Cedric scoffed. “Okay, lead on, Granger.” Sniffing happily, Princess led the tall boy onward as she kept low to the ground, following the scent.

The magic of the hedges changed as Princess jumped, snarling, before she threw herself into a sprint as the billowing leaves around them crashed inward, Cedric following suit as quickly as his inferior human legs could carry him a splint second later as howling wind tore at them, pushing them onward as Princess sensed something as she rounded a corner.

It was pushing them directly toward a glimmer of gently ringing gold in the distance, the sound stronger than ever.

The Triwizard Cup.

“THERE IT IS!” Cedric yelled over the howling of the wind, the hammering of his footsteps dozens of metres behind Princess’ gait, before Princess screeched to a frantic halt at the base of the plinth the Cup stood on. The clearing, she realized with a jolt, was devoid of the red haze of the maze, and the blue and green roots of its walls did not permeate the ground. It was a safe clearing. Seconds later, Cedric’s footsteps slammed to a halt beside her as she turned to him, panting happily as she sniffed and pointed her face at it.  _ Take it _ .

“Why haven’t you taken it?!” Cedric yelled over the howling wind - as Princess hoped he was unaware of their safety and so would take the cup for himself. She didn’t deserve it, not after trying to bite him. “Is it because you don’t have hands?! Merlin Granger, Princess, take the bloody Cup!” Princess snorted, shaking her head.  _ No _ . “Ariadne, Princess,  _ both of you _ , I’ve been trailing in your shadow this whole tournament, and on TOP of that, you’ve been dealing with this! I don’t know how you kept it a secret but bloody hell, you deserve to win this!” he yelled. Princess barked back indignantly, refusing.

“I’m not fucking taking it!” Cedric yelled over the wind that burst through the air, his voice audible only by her lupine hearing. “You won, by all rights you shouldn’t even have saved me! Just take the damn Cup!”

Princess sighed haggardly. She didn’t deserve to win! She’d nearly attacked Cedric!

_ But. _ Ariadne’s words rang in her mind.  _ What better way than by winning the Triwizard Cup? _ She’d entered the maze to win. And if Cedric didn’t take it and she didn’t, then Fleur or Krum would. Either that or they too would have the same stubborn insistence that she take it. She’d made a promise to Ginny.

“You’ve dealt with so bloody much this year, and that’s without even  _ considering _ how hard it had to be keeping this secret!” Cedric bellowed. “TAKE IT! It’ll be pretty cool to have a werewolf win!”

Princess stepped closer to the Cup hesitantly. But how was she going to take it? She didn’t have hands, and she didn’t particularly want to use her mouth just in case someone else had to take it again, she didn’t want to get saliva on it. She took a deep breath. If she was right, everyone would know the truth. Everyone would know what she was. And that was good. Princess set her front paws up on the plinth, before she hooked her front left paw under its handle and slid it off the plinth, catching it on the ground between her paws.

The contract around the glimmers of Ariadne within her - albeit difficult to sense, buried as it was under her lycanthropy - vanished with a silent snap, as did that of Cedric’s magic. The Triwizard Tournament was over.

And the maze fell silent, the blue and green magic falling into dust as a rush of green and yellow magic surrounded them. Wind rushed through her coat like a hurricane, as Cedric marvelled at whatever was happening around their little bubble before -

The bubble snapped.

The orchestra started playing, as the charm from her collar pulsed out the stands where Ariadne had first entered the maze, the hedges completely gone, withered away with a wide plain of grass where it had once stood. Still only feet from her, Cedric stood, beaming at the wolf as Fleur gasped, now standing a dozen metres away, and Viktor span to see her on the other side of the lawn.

Her ears were split by a roar of applause as she howled gleefully, the applause faltering as they realized what they were seeing, as she sensed her family quickly making their way down the stadium.

“ _ AND THE WINNER OF THE TRIWI- What on Earth-?! _ ” Cornelius Fudge’s voice boomed out over the crowd, before Hermione, running past, handed him the parchment, which he suddenly flipped out, staring at Princess with the most shocked look she or Ariadne had ever sensed. The band stopped discordantly, as Professor McGonagall continued clapping, stepping out onto the field as Hermione and Ginny ran out.

She had won the Triwizard Tournament, and she had done it as a werewolf. The green cones of magical cameras started snapping away chaotically as Sirius’ coat flailed out behind him and Hermione barrelled across the lawn like a cannonball. Her human sister slid to a halt beside her, immediately running her fingers through Princess’ coat rapidly.

“Well done, Princess! Well done!” Dennis called as Fudge spluttered, his amplification charm still up as Princess let herself lay on the ground, before Ginny too added her hands to what was quickly becoming the best scratching session she’d ever had. Not even Charlie, Ron’s brother who’d met them in the forest, gave better scratches.

“I’m… I’m being told that  _ that  _ is Ariadne Granger!” Cornelius Fudge called hesitantly, standing as Percy stared at her as gasps rippled through the crowd.

“Holy shit well done!” Ginny yelled, beaming at her even as she vigorously rubbed her back. “Well  _ fucking  _ done!”

“She is a werewolf?!” Viktor exclaimed, staring at her incredulously as Fleur ran over, beaming.

“Yes, she is! And she is a  _ beautiful _ wolf, oh my!” Fleur replied, kneeling down and gently petting Princess’ head. Princess grumbled happily and rolled over slightly, her left legs dangling in the air as she basked in the affection even as she knew something was happening.

“Yeah, I just found out. She saved my life!” Cedric called. “Apparently like this she’s called Princess, it’s on the collar,” he told them, standing over the group.

“Ohhh, that is adorable!” Fleur crooned, waving her hand between Princess’ ears as Princess resisted the urge to let her tongue loll out happily. An accidental infection  _ there _ was not a good idea. 

“I made it, it does the same thing her glasses do!” Hermione explained as she cuddled Princess, to an understanding  _ ohhhhh _ from Cedric.

Eventually, she rolled back onto her feet and started nudging her snout at Ginny’s tummy, trying to tickle her. Seconds later, however, six Aurors were standing around the group, wands raised as Fudge stayed behind them, and she froze, whining gently as she cowered from them.

“Oh she’s perfectly safe, put your wands down,” Sirius protested, batting one of their wands down. “Look, she’s keeping her mouth closed, she’s more scared of you than you should be of her.” With that, Sirius stepped over to her side and started patting the side of her neck affectionately. “See? Perfectly harmless,” he said as Princess leaned into his leg, drawing away from the Aurors.

“Miss Granger has had constant access to Wolfsbane Potion ever since she became a werewolf,” Professor Dumbledore announced, striding over. “She is entirely harmless, Cornelius. Call off your Aurors.”

“W-but- this is most irregular to say the least!” Fudge exclaimed, jabbing his hand at Princess as the Aurors lowered their wands. “I mean-”

“There is also no rule against a transformed werewolf winning the Triwizard Tournament, Minister,” Dumbledore added with a smirk. “So I suggest you finish your earlier sentence and announce the winner.”

“I…” Fudge raised his wand to his throat. “The… the winner of the Triwizard Tournament is the  _ werewolf _ Ariadne Granger!” he exclaimed incredulously, running a hand across his forehead, an even greater gasp striking at Princess’ ears from the stands. Eventually, as murmurs and shouts of surprise filled the stadium, the news diffused into applause as at least two thirds of the Hogwarts students slowly stood and began clapping as the group surrounding her parted to let them see the great, black and white furred, white-eyed wolf that stood before the Triwizard Cup, her ears up and her tail flapping from side to side wildly as she threw back her head and howled once more for good measure.

Ariadne Granger was a werewolf, and now the world knew it because she’d won the Triwizard Tournament.

\--

**Author's Note:**

> And let’s end that fun little AU there, shall we?  
> (let’s ignore that logically, Princess would be covered in Acromantula and Skrewt guts, it makes it adorable if we pretend she’s not)


End file.
